Opening Up Your Mind

“Can’t talk to you without talking to me…”

New year, new you. I bet you’ve never heard that one before, have you?

While many people make resolutions for the new year, I always think it’s wise to take a different approach—one that is more about self-improvement and becoming the best version of yourself. And in order to accomplish this, you must first open up your mind to different opportunities, which inevitably lead to personal and professional growth.

In hindsight, I’m glad I remained open-minded about my musical tastes. Many years ago, when I only listened to the Grateful Dead to the exclusion of many other bands, a friend of mine had suggested that I attend a Phish show. My reply: “I’ll be the oldest one there. Not interested”.

With a change of heart in 2013, I attended a Phish show at Jones Beach (in a downpour no less) and instantly fell in love with the band. 

Due to my tunnel vision at that time, I would have missed out on yet another talented group of jamband musicians, as well as missed out on expanding my professional and personal network with Phish fans. I feel so fortunate that someone planted the seed and showed me the light.

“If you would only stop to live, one moment at a time, you would I think, be startled by the things that you would find”

Back to WSDaH…

I hopped on one of the WSDaH networking buses a few months ago and was approached by one of the “passengers” to do a technical piece on workplace fraud. I was flattered but no sooner had I accepted the assignment that I broke out in the proverbial cold sweat. Has that ever happened to you when you prematurely commit to something? I was clearly out of my comfort zone and thought I was out of my mind to accept this assignment.

Nonetheless, I forged ahead, scheduled a few calls with the client, and my article was eventually approved. Big phew!

We all love hanging out in our comfort zones and the unknown can be intimidating. At our age, no one wants to fail and we grow a bit too comfortable and complacent in our routines and our way of thinking. But I have found that stepping into the unknown can also be exciting if you allow yourself to take a chance and embrace your fears. Opening up your mind and being open to what comes next can be exhilarating and freeing at the same time. And as an added bonus, you might also learn something new about yourself.

Speaking of “opening up your mind”, one of our WSDaH Family Members, Simeon Schnapper, Founder & Managing Partner of the JLS Fund, is professionally doing just that. The JLS Fund "leverages the enormous potential of plant-based and psychedelic medicines to heal illness and enhance wellness".

Simeon recently spent time on Capitol Hill to meet with senators and representatives on both sides of the aisle to discuss The Critical Need for Federal Psychedelic Research Funding, which was very well-received.

He has also traveled the globe learning about new opportunities—from chemistry labs of universities to remote jungles of the Amazon and Africa—and just returned from Iceland where he helped facilitate their first ever Psychedelic conference.

As many of you might recall, “magic mushrooms'' were words you might have whispered back in the day, and yet, here we are in 2023, making groundbreaking strides in the mental health field using psilocybin. "I'm thrilled to not have to whisper anymore and can now sing from the mountaintop”, says Simeon.

If Simeon’s story isn’t (literally) about opening up your mind, I don’t know what is!

Some other WSDaH Family members have also decided to expand their horizons, keeping an open mind to new opportunities and in turn were met with great success. They took a chance, encountered people and scenarios they never anticipated and the rest is history. I think their tales will shed some light on why it is so important, especially in the new year, to always keep your mind and options open, especially during networking opportunities. You just never know what surprises might await…”

“I was pumped up for the annual St. George’s Society British Bash at the new Hard Rock Hotel in NYC when my wife Audrey came down with a cold, so I decided to invite a new friend from Wall Street Dead aHead (WSDaH). Orion Corcilius, a Family member who I had made fast friends with only having had a few conversations with in the past, seemed like the perfect choice. I loved the irony of inviting an ‘Aussie’ to a British charity event too!

Orion had previously offered his expertise to one of my clients for which I was extremely grateful. As the ‘dynamic duo’, we enjoyed a night of food, drinks, meeting new people, and gambling where all funds went to St. George’s Society for many charitable causes.

Orion proved to not only be a ‘hot date’ with great conversation, but also my lucky charm as he helped me rake in the 2nd most money winnings in the room!

Serendipitously, Orion is also working on a new real estate development project for a beautiful high-end nature and wellness resort and spa in the Shenandoah Valley just west of DC named Simply Shenandoah, which he shared with me and my real estate partner at Lockton Companies for additional support around risk management, insurance, and funding sources. Orion and I both hope this to be the first of many deals together and we look forward to being concert buddies in the near future too. It was a win-win for both of us.”

Jonathan Egan, Partner, Lockton Companies

“I took a ride on my first networking bus a few months ago. The bus is a great idea because it allows you to connect with Family members in a much more intimate setting since there are typically only 15 people on the bus and each of us gets an opportunity to speak and share our backgrounds and expertise with other Family members.

The first person I met on the bus was Bill Carbone, the Executive Director of TeachRock. TeachRock, founded by Stevie van Zandt, is a free online educational resource which utilizes popular music and culture throughout their curriculums to engage their students in a unique way. After hearing Bill speak, I knew that he would be a great connection for my son Jules who was currently looking for employment at that time. After the networking bus got to its destination, I asked Bill if he would be available to have a conversation with Jules.

I thought it would be a good idea for my son to connect with Bill, once he saw that Bill’s vocation and his own aligned in a certain way. Bill and Jules had a wonderful conversation on the phone and soon after, Bill reached out to my son again with an opportunity that has since changed his life. It was Bill who had introduced Jules to New York Edge (NYE), an organization that is the largest provider of after-school arts activities across all the New York City boroughs. He was interviewed by the Director of Arts and shortly thereafter was hired as a Guitar Consultant in partnership with One Million Guitars. Tasked with teaching guitar to students, in his first few months, he was already teaching at 7 different sites, across Harlem, Queens, the Bronx and Manhattan.

Today, he is not only teaching students, but also writing their music and guitar curriculum, to which he’s unlocked a newly formed passion.

To say that the stars aligned on the bus that day would be putting it mildly. So grateful that I hopped on the WSDaH networking bus. Goes to show, you don’t ever know…”

David Drucker, CEO/Founder, highresolution

To quote Albert Einstein: “The mind that opens up to a new idea never returns to its original size”. What will you be doing in the new year to expand your personal and professional growth? Inquiring minds want to know…

References:

Phish - Undermind - Scents and Subtle Sounds - June 15, 2004

(Please note: As the Feature Writer of WSDaH and a self-proclaimed DeadHead, I received permission from Deb Solomon to

openly express my love for Phish in this article).